


when there's a little love in your heart

by Pomidorowka



Category: Ted Lasso (TV)
Genre: F/M, Mutual Pining, Swearing, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Yes im going there, feelings (derogatory), post S1
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-24
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-15 13:53:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29684958
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pomidorowka/pseuds/Pomidorowka
Summary: Rebecca helps Ted get the Tom Ford campaign. For totally normal, work-related reasons.
Relationships: Ted Lasso/Rebecca Welton
Comments: 23
Kudos: 49





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I had this idea running in my head and I decided to play with it, see where it takes me. Be warned, this is my first fic *ever*, but there's just not enough Ted Lasso content! Hope you enjoy

### Prologue

Rebecca’s day had been busier than usual, going from one meeting to the other. Her mail hasn’t seemed to know how to shut up. It felt good to be busy, though, she had to admit. Ever since she confessed to Ted and abandoned her scheme to destroy the team, she found actual joy in building it up again, branding it as truly her own. And try to erase any lasting semblance of the club that Rupert had built. Now it was her turn and she was going to fucking own it. 

She was in the middle of responding to yet another email when she heard Keeley’s chipper voice at the door of her office. A smile immediately formed on her face upon seeing the young woman enter. 

“You wanted to see me? What’s up?” Keeley walked straight to her desk and plopped onto one of the chairs, making herself comfortable. 

Rebecca furrowed her eyebrows for a second trying to remember what it was she wanted. “Ah, yes, right. I wanted to talk about Ted.”

Keeley instantly sat up straighter, perking up at her friend mentioning Ted. “Oh, yeah? What about Ted?” She asked, trying to at least hide her anticipation.

She’d noticed the vibe between those two, the looks they send one another when the other wasn't not looking. Well, she was looking and hell the chemistry is tangible when these two are near each other and she was fully onboard the Lasso/Welton train. It totally makes sense. They like, compliment each other. It's so hot! She hasn’t said or done anything, though, she didn’t want to push, with the both of them being quite freshly divorced and all. She’s been patiently waiting for them to do _something_ , but her patience was running fucking thin.

“I think we should work on his branding”

“Oh”, the young woman deflated a bit. “Right, okay, yeah. What were you thinking?” 

“As catchy as “wanker” was for a time, I thought we should give the audience something else to focus on. Ted’s actually doing a great job and people should start noticing, you know? Maybe we could warm them up to him”

“I do know”, she responded with a warm smile. “Good idea. Do you have something in mind?”

“I remembered Ted mentioning Tom Ford to you some time ago, so I made a few calls.” Rebecca sent Keeley a smile, “I’m leaving the rest to you. And Ted.”

“Tom Ford?! You actually know Tom Ford?”

“Not _know_ know him. We met a couple of times is all” 

“Rich, hot, mad fit _and_ well-connected? You _are_ a dream boat, Rebecca!”

Rebecca rolled her eyes and sent her a “stop it” kind of look. 

“That’s great! Ted’s gonna be thrilled.” She looked into the other woman’s eyes with sincerity. “So, d’you wanna tell him the good news?”

“No!“ Rebecca responded, maybe a bit too quickly. It made Keeley flinch slightly. “I mean, no, that’s your job, isn’t it. I just made a few phone calls, it’s not a big deal.”

It wasn’t, was it? No, it’s her job. She has contacts and she’s allowed to use them if in the end they benefit him. The team. Benefit the team.

“It’s a huge fucking deal, Rebecca. He’s wanted this for so long!” She saw Rebecca smile anxiously and gave in. “Well, alright then.” She shifted in her seat, getting ready to leave. “I’m gonna go tell him and set this thing up. Thanks, love” 

She got up and took a look at the older woman, she looked tired. “Are you ok?”

Rebecca looked up at her, surprise flashed on her face. “Yeah. Yes, I’m fine. Just swamped before the weekend”, she smiled up at her. “Thank you”

Keeley winked at her and made for the door. “Alright, call me if you need anything! And get some rest!”


	2. Chapter 2

Monday morning, like clockwork, just when she was settling down to get to work, Rebecca heard a knock at her office door and Ted’s sing-songy “knock, knock!” when he came in. It’s Monday morning for god’s sake, how could he be so jolly. 

“Hiya, boss! How was your weekend? Mine was just peachy! I finally tried to make my own croissants and let me tell you, they may take a heck a long time to make but oooooh boy, wait until you try one of these. ”

He was rummaging around in his backpack and finally fished out not only the usual pink box with biscuits but also a bigger one.

Rebecca stopped typing and finally looked up at him when he placed the baked goods on her desk. She looked at him in consternation. “Ted? Are you?” She paused, “Alright?”

He was wearing a stubble. Like he hasn’t shaven in a few days. He looked so different it stirred something within her. She was so used to a clean-shaven, perfectly-groomed mustached Ted. This made him look unkempt and _rugged_.

Ted looked at her in confusion and saw her gaze directed at his… lips? “Oh! No, yeah, I’m perfectly fine.” He run his hand through his rough stubble. “This is for Tom Ford. Well, for the photoshoot to be exact. They wanted me to look rugged for the photos. _Manly._ Though I do have issues with that. I’m a man, ain’t that manly enough?” He shook his head, “Gender roles, am I right?”

Rebecca just couldn’t stop staring. It was like she was seeing him for the first time. It made her feel funny. _He looked manly, alright_. She swallowed, shaking herself out of whatever the fuck was happening to her, “Ye—right.” 

“Anyways. Hope you enjoy these, boss.” He placed the boxes on her desk. “I’m off to become football’s next Top Model! Watch out, Beckham!” He paused and looked into space, considering something. “No, he’s a player, that’s not a good example. Watch out, Zidane! Nope, he was a player, too. José Mourinho? He’s not bad lookin’.” He looked at Rebecca, unsure, questioning.

“And was also a player.”

“Ain’t there some kind of coach/model equivalent for me?” He looked disappointed.

“I think you already know the answer to that, Ted.”

“Riiiight. Right, right, right”, he nodded. His eyes suddenly lit up, bright smile forming under his mustache. “I’m a trend-setter!” 

Rebecca couldn’t help but chuckle. “That’s the spirit.” 

“Ok, then. See ya around, boss!”

“Good luck with your modelling career.”

“Looking Ford-ward to it!” He turned around just in time to see her roll her eyes. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your encouraging comments! This chapter is a bit longer than the previous ones. I hope you enjoy it.

When Rebecca finally closed her laptop for the day, she looked around and saw that the sun had already set. She hadn’t even noticed the lack of sunlight, nor the silence that surrounded her. She’d told her secretary to go home hours ago, knowing she wouldn’t need anything from her that day. Higgins left not much later. She stayed, though, because she preferred to be buried in work these days, having her mind occupied, to going home to an empty house. Alone. Besides, this was perfect. With everyone gone she was free to use the teams’ gym. She’d started doing that lately. Some days she’d just pack her training clothes and stay late to exercise a bit. 

Exercise always made her feel better, cleared her mind. Back when she was with Rupert they’d had a gym at their home and she’d use it whenever she felt frustrated or whenever his words or actions stung particularly hard. Exercise became her escape for a while. She’d put on music and she’d shut off the world around her. There were periods of time when she didn’t exercise at all because Rupert would make a remark about her arms being too buff, or he’d say that he wanted her body to be soft. _Feminine._

After the divorce she started going to the gym a few blocks from her house, but soon the papers got a whiff of it, and she sure as fuck wasn’t going to be photographed all sweaty in her gym clothes and all. Who did they think she was, Lady Di? So she'd just stuck with running, but always in the early hours of the day, when most people were still asleep. The neighborhood was nearly always peaceful at that time of day, still laden with sleep. And there was never any paparazzi in sight. Nowadays, though, she’d been using the treadmill down at the gym, because it was convenient. And the weather was rubbish. 

She’d changed into her exercise clothes, put on headphones and just focused on the miles, the pace and her breathing. No paperwork, no emails, nobody bothering her— the music in her earphones stopped. Someone was calling her. She took a deep breath, rolled her eyes and pressed a button on her earphone. 

“Yes?” She answered, her breathing heavy from the exercise. Still keeping up with her pace, though. 

“Hi, Rebecca.” Ted paused. “Well this might sound weird but could you slow down?” 

She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “Ted?” How did he…? “What? What’s happened?”

“Oh, no! Nothing’s happened, it’s just that I’m behind you and I didn’t—” 

She immediately turned around, completely forgetting she was on a _fucking_ treadmill. 

“Fuck!” She screamed as her step faltered and she started falling backwards… right onto Ted. 

“Fuck, are you alright?” She asked as soon as she found her bearings. Ted was laying flat on the ground and she was, yup, she was right on top of him. She rose from his chest, rested one of her hands on the ground to look down at him. With her other hand she took out her earphones and the first thing she heard was his grunt. “Ted?” 

She reached her hand to his face and touched his still stubbled cheek. “Ted? Talk to me”, she asked again a bit more concerned. 

“This is exactly what I wanted to avoid." He paused to grunt again. "But I’m glad I could be of some help.” He responded finally, looking up into her eyes. “Soft landing, I hope?”

Rebecca let out the breath she didn’t know she was holding. She ran her hand from his cheek down to his chest, taking in his form, assessing any damage. That’s when she finally noticed their position. She was laying half on top of him, their legs tangled. She immediately got off him and cleared her throat. “You sure, you’re ok?” 

Ted sat up and leaned back on his hands, taking a moment, feeling for any signs of injury. “Yup, I’m fine. You? 

“Fine. Shit, I’m sorry”, she sat beside him. 

“Nope, that was entirely my fault. I’m sorry I scared you, I was trying to avoid that actually. Backfired.” He cringed for a second before his face lit up. “Just like you did on that treadmill! Get it? Cause you fell back off the—" 

Rebecca ignored his commentary. “What are you doing back here at this hour?” 

“Oh, I forgot my keys when I left for the shoot. Didn’t think it would’ve taken that long. Honestly, the amount of work it takes to take a couple of photos…” He saw the look Rebacca was giving him. “Right. I was in the locker room when I saw that the lights were still on at the gym and then I heard somebody using the equipment and came in to investigate. Honestly, I was expecting it to be Dani. That darn kid has more energy than my son on a sugar high!"

“But then why did you call me on my phone?" 

“Well I tried calling your name but you didn’t hear me with those in”, he pointed at the earbuds laying next to her. “Then I thought about approaching you but I assumed you weren’t expecting anyone to be here this late, so that would’ve probably scared the bejesus out of you.” 

“As opposed to…” she waved her hands around, pointing out their current situation. 

“I do see the irony”, he nodded. 

Silence fell between them, neither of them knowing what to say next. The only sound was the whirring of the treadmill. Ted looked around him and wanted to get up to turn it off but he didn’t really want to move. He was comfortable right there, with Rebecca next to him. 

He took her in for the first time. She was wearing a ponytail but some of her hair got loose and fell around her face. He wanted to reach for one of the strands and put it behind her ear but he caught himself just in time. That probably wouldn’t be the wisest of decisions. 

She was wearing a fitting blue and red tank top (Go, Richmond!) and black leggings. He realized that this was the first time he’s seen her when she wasn’t perfectly put together. She looked so natural. Like she’s pealed off some of the layers or took off her armor… metaphorically speaking. It suited her. Not that her work clothes didn’t suit her. They did. _They so did._

His eyes wandered further down her body and that’s when he saw—“Are those the new Nikes?!” He sat up closer to take a closer look. “Ooooooh, I like ‘em. That red and green accent?!” He made a chef’s kiss gesture.

She looked at him, entertained, but didn’t say anything. Just smirked. She’d noticed his collection of sneakers and assumed he was probably into footwear, so she was tickled by his comment. 

“So, do you come here often?” He asked when he settled down again, now facing her. 

God, that sounded like a cheap pick up line and she couldn’t help but snort. He looked at her questioningly, until he realized what he’d said. “Uhh, I meant—” but before he could retort, she helped him out. 

“Depends”

“When did you start using our gym?” 

“Several months ago” 

“Perks of the job, right?” 

“Hm”, she nodded. “I guess.” She fell silent again, considering what to say next, what to do next. “I went to the gym near my house a couple of times, but people there started talking and the papers soon found out, so…” 

“I thought they would’ve learned a thing or two from Princess Diana”

Rebecca looked at him surprised. “My thoughts exactly!”. He gets it. “Anyway, I had to get back on track considering the amount of delicious baked goods I’ve been consuming”, she teased. 

He laughed and looked at her. “I can’t see a single reason why you’d have to”. 

She saw his eyes run up and down her body. It made a shiver run down her spine. He looked back into her eyes and there was something there, that she hadn’t seen before. She felt a blush rise in her cheeks. She broke the eye contact and cleared her throat. “No, you see the effect of why I do. So how was the photoshoot?” _Nice save, Rebecca._

“Oh, good. I liked the photos. Keeley said I’m a DILF? I don’t know what that means, I’m gonna google that later, though considering her tone I assume it’s good” Rebecca tried to hold back her chuckle, unsuccessfully. 

“I don’t know when the pictures are gonna come out. Keeley said she’d send me the final shots for approval, though I don’t know why they’d need my approval. Those people are the real pros." He paused. "I do have to say, I don’t think a modelling career is for me." 

“Oh, no?” 

“Nah. Too much fuss. I’m perfect right here.” _Right now_ , he added to himself, when he saw her smile.

“I also wanted to thank you for arranging the whole thing.” Her smile faltered. 

“That wasn’t—”

He sent her an expectant look. 

“Did Keeley say—?”

“She didn’t say anything. But it wasn’t hard to figure out. I mean it, thank you, Rebecca.” 

She shifted a little under his intense gaze. “It’s nothing Ted. It’s my job to help this club. And you’re a big part of it.”

He nodded and looked at his hands. A silence fell between them again. Rebecca saw that Ted was considering saying something.

“All of it is thanks to you.” 

Their eyes met again and Rebecca wasn’t prepared neither for that statement nor for the genuine gratefulness that she saw in his eyes. And something else. Was it sadness? It was there one second and gone the next, but she noticed it. 

“Ted…” She didn’t have a clue what to say him. The atmosphere around them seemed heavier than before.

Suddenly, he started getting up. “It’s late. And I’ve interrupted your session”

He reached out and finally pulled the safety cord on the treadmill and it stopped immediately, causing a deafening silence to fell in the room. He turned towards Rebecca and offered her his hand. She took it and let him pull her up to her feet. 

Once up, they just stood there. Rebecca looked at Ted but he was looking at their joined hands. It felt warm agains her palm, such a contrast to the last time she held his freezeing hand back in Liverpool. 

It felt like he was about to say something more. He finally lifted his eyes and was instantly surprised to see her eyes at almost his eye level. Whatever was on his mind just vanished. He smiled brightly. “Well hello! You’re almost my height without heels!” 

He lifted his hand and laid it flat on top of his head and moved it towards her face, comparing their height difference in the most scientific way known to man. 

He stopped his hand before it collided with her forehead. “What is that an inch? Two?” 

Rebecca stepped back, amused. “Couldn’t say.” 

“Well then”, he begun a moment later. “I’m gonna leave you to your jog. Again, sorry for scaring you. I’m gonna go home and get rid of this. It itches.” He scrunched his nose and ran his hand through his rough stubble. It made Rebecca’s eyes dart down to his lips. That damn stubble. She remembered the way it felt against her hand when she was checking on him and took a breath to clear that thought right out of her mind again. 

“Right. Imma skedaddle.” He stepped beside her, heading for the door. “I’ll see ya tomorrow, boss. Have good night." 

“Night, Ted.” She replied after him. 

When he was gone Rebecca stepped back on the treadmill to finish her run. Her head was buzzing with everything that just happened. She started at slower pace, but the events kept replaying in her head. Everything between them felt different somehow. _He_ was different she couldn’t think what could’ve brought it on. 

She thought back to the real earnestness in his words. _All of it is thanks to you._

____

But it wasn’t, was it? She’d just brought him on entirely selfishly with the intention of destroying the team, Rupert and, by default, Ted. She hadn’t once thought about how it could’ve affected his life. How could he be thanking her?! He put this team back together. Not her. 

____

Fuck, why didn’t she say THAT to him. She cursed herself and increased the pace, thinking it would make her stop thinking about him. But to no avail as next thing she knew she was replaying how surprisingly firm his body felt when she landed on him and— 

____

“Fucking hell”, she scolded herself under her breath. “Get it together.” 

____

She was just frustrated, she thought. She would be fine once she’s burnt the energy. It was fine. Tomorrow he’ll just be Ted, her team manager. No stubble, no firm chest, no warm hands— Jesus Christ. 

____


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter got totally out of control. I spent way too much time thinking about Rebecca’s music taste and I couldn’t figure it out? Especially with Hannah’s musical theatre career. I mean with Ted we had some tidbits (90s hip hop, classic rock), but Rebecca? Besides Spice girls? Help me out, what do you guys think?  
> I finally picked out a spotify playlist that I thought would be universal. [here](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DWYNSm3Z3MxiM?si=1sY3R0c9RWa36Ax5zoLMhw) it is if you want to immerse yourself, so to speak. ANYWAY. Hope you enjoy.

Rebecca couldn’t believe how fast the week had gone. On Friday evening she finally finished her work, closed her laptop and walked to the bathroom adjoining her office to change into her sports clothes. She hadn’t had a chance to go down to the gym since Monday. Since that quite memorable encounter with Ted. 

Throughout the whole week Ted seemed… fine. They were back to their normal routine: he brought her biscuits every morning, they exchanged some pleasantries and then they went about their days. She still thought back to the sadness she saw in his eyes at one point. She knew there was something he wasn’t telling her, but she’ll wait until he was ready. 

She walked down the stairs and headed down to the gym. She was walking through the teams locker room when she noticed that the light in Ted’s and coach Beard’s office was still on. Ted was still sat at his desk, hunching over some papers. _Odd._ She stopped mid track and decided to knock at his office door. She stepped in when she heard “Yeah?” from the other side of the door.

“What are you still doing here so late?” She asked. “It’s Friday evening!”

“Well I could ask you the same. But looking at your outfit I won’t.” He smiled at her, avoiding her question. Now she was curious.

“Don’t you have any plans for tonight?” She folded her arms and leaned on the door frame. 

“Well I have a Facetime scheduled with Henry for later tonight, but until then…” He shrugged and pointed at his paperwork. “Thought I’d do something productive in the meantime. Make my boss proud.”

She smiled at that. “Your boss appreciates your hard work, but she would rather you didn’t overwork yourself”

“Nah, I’m fine. I like work, it keeps me busy” 

Rebecca hummed in agreement. Doesn’t she know it.

“Hey, would you mind some company while you work out?” He asked all of a sudden.

“Well, I…” She was a bit thrown off. Would she? “Are you going to distract me again? Or scare me?”

He chuckled. “I promise not to.” He raised three fingers. “Scout’s honor.” 

“Alright then.” She nodded, surprising them both.

“You know what, if you want you can pair your phone with the gym’s speaker and you can put on whatever music you like.” He paused, unsure. “Or you can keep your headphones on, if you prefer, I don’t mind.”

She’d already pulled out her phone and started scrolling. “Do you have a preference?”

“Oh, no. Whatever puts pep in you step.” He reached for his backpack. “I’m gonna go change. You go on and warm up the equipment for me.”

Rebecca made her way to the gym, still looking at her phone, deciding which playlist to put on. She had several playlists saved on her Spotify that she just alternated between depending on her mood that day. She finally settled on one and pressed shuffle. The opening notes to Baba O’Riley filled the room through the sound system. Rebecca placed her phone down with her things on one of the benches and walked over to her usual treadmill. She started the machine and increased the pace from a walk to a slow jog.

“I’m coming in!” She heard Ted announce himself and shook her head in faux annoyance. 

“The Who?! I dig your style!” He walked towards her and stepped on the treadmill right next to hers.

Ted started running and she could see in corner of her eye that he was bobbing his head to the music. And he kept nodding the next few song, or gesturing, or waving his hands around. She was surprised he hasn’t started full on singing the songs yet. She didn’t have to wait long, though. As the next song rolled in, Ted gasped out loud.

“Oh my god, I am surrounded by Bosses! A BOSS sandwich!” He exclaimed excitedly, breathing heavily from the exercise. That didn’t stop him, however, from belting out “BABEY WE WERE BOOOORN TO RUUUUN!!” 

Rebecca snorted a laugh. Ridiculous man. 

“You told me not to distract you, so you decided to distract me, huh? That’s okay, I can multitask. Don’t know how long I’ll be able to keep up the pace while singing, though. How does Beyonce do it?! That woman is a superhuman!”

“Maybe if you stopped, you wouldn’t have that problem?” She responded matter-of-factly. Though she was amused, she had to admit.

“Stopped?! But these are my jams!”

“I should’ve know better.” She said more to herself than him. “I could put on something else?” 

“Oh no, don’t you dare.” He responded with difficulty. “I’m just”, he took a few quick breaths. “Gonna shut up now.” 

Rebecca glanced over at him with concern. “Maybe you should just…”

Ted just shook his head, gave her a thumbs up and kept running. Honestly, she was impressed he’s been able to keep the pace for this long. She didn’t expect him to be in such good shape. She thought back to when she landed on him last time they were in this room. His body _did_ feel firm. 

Rebecca shook her head. Not this again. She rolled her eyes and raised her right hand to wipe of the sweat off her brow. She raised her eyebrows when she heard Ted sing “I'M HOT BLOODED”. 

_Don’t even go there_ , she scolded herself. 

“You know you’re a foreigner singing a Foreigner song?” She asked, desperate for her mind to take her anywhere else. 

“Well, hot damn. That’s a first for me.” He started to decrease the pace on his treadmill, until he was walking at a fairly normal pace, trying to steadily stabilize his breathing and heartrate. He heard the beginning of a Queen song come through the speakers. 

“I still can’t believe Freddy Mercury owned the club for a while.” His breathing now back to normal. 

“Really? Freddy Mercury owning a club full of fit, young, sweaty men surprises you?”

“Not when you put it like _that_.”

After a while he stopped the machine and got off to stretch. He glanced over at Rebecca who was still at it, her pace steady. He was really impressed. She would probably have no trouble keeping up with the boys on the pitch. 

He looked around the room considering his options equipment-wise. He didn’t use the gym all that often, it wasn’t like he needed it. He’d always been in quite good shape without really trying. He walked over to one of the seat presses. _I guess I’m lifting_. He lowered the weight more on a guess that anything else and started lifting. He soon got bored, however, and he felt kind of weird being all the way across the room from Rebecca. He looked in her direction and saw that she was slowing down, which meant she would soon move on to doing something else, so kept at it for the time being. Maybe he should’ve lowered the weight a bit more. _Geez_.

When Rebecca finally got off her treadmill she started going about her routine: legs, abs, arms. She was quite focused on her exercise, for the most part, but she couldn’t stop her eyes from wandering in Ted’s direction, as his muscles kept peaking out from under his sleeves as he was pressing weights.

He suddenly slammed the weights down and startled Rebecca, making her avert her eyes immediately. 

He sent an apology her way as he saw her jump a little. He looked back at the weights and did a double take on Rebecca. She was doing _squats_. His eyes when up and down with her movement, transfixed. 

His throat got dry all of a sudden. He looked the other way before she could notice him staring. _What the hell, man. That’s your boss_ , he scolded himself as he felt a blush rising in his cheeks. 

It wasn’t like he hadn’t noticed that Rebecca was a beautiful woman before. A very tall, shapely, beautiful wo— _Okay, now_.

“Uh, hey, you want some water?” 

She looked at him, confused. “No, I’ve brought my own.” She pointed at one of the benches where she’d left it.

“Oh, yeah, right.” He nodded. “I’m gonna go get some.” He paused. “Water. Get some water.” He pointed his thumb in the direction of his office. “I’ve just gotta cool down”, he muttered to himself. 

“What?” 

“Be right back!”

When he reached his office, Ted leaned against his desk. Trying to pull himself together. He considered just cutting the evening short and going home, but he really didn’t want to be alone at the apartment again. Beard was on a date and Nate had a family thing tonight so they were out of question. 

He took a sip of water and psyched himself up. _You’re gonna go in there and you’re gonna be professional. No glances. No dirty thoughts. Pure professionalism. Just two platonic friends exercising together. Separately._

He looked at his phone to check for messages and saw that Michelle had written a few minutes ago.

_I’m sorry Ted but we’re going to have to reschedule your call. Henry’s staying over at a friend’s house tonight. Text you tomorrow._

Ted deflated immediately . He’d been waiting for this call the whole week. His work and Henry’s school and after-school activities kept them from being able to do more than text. Ted sighed and sat on the edge of his desk. He just missed him so much. And now Michelle’s been talking about not being sure that Henry would come to London on his holiday break, because there was a summer camp that he had set his mind on. 

Of course Ted understood. He wouldn’t do anything to change his mind, he just wanted his kid to be happy above anything else. He just really missed his son and he couldn’t help feeling a bit down about it.

But it wasn’t only sadness that ran through him. He felt guilty. Guilty for ]making Henry decide whether he wanted to see his father or spend the summer with his friends. Guilty, that while he was here having, in many ways, the time of his life, his child was four thousand miles away, on a different continent. 

He felt like he wasn’t the father that Henry deserved. He wasn’t there for Henry. He wasn’t there. He often wondered how his absence was going to affect Henry in the long run? Will Henry grow to despise him for it?

Ted sighed heavily and made his way back to the gym. When he came back, Rebecca had changed over to doing sit-ups. He looked about the room and finally settled on using one of the stationary bikes. He sat down and saw that she also moved. And now she was right in front of him using the pulley cable machine thingy, whatever it was called. 

After a series of exercises Rebecca looked over at Ted. He was unpassionately pedaling, his gaze firmly fixed on the ground. She furrowed her eyebrows, she felt that something was wrong. She decided to investigate. 

She walked over to the bike right next to him and sat down. He didn’t seem to notice her presence.

“You ok, Ted?”

“Huh? No, I’m okay.” He tried to smile under his mustache but it came out more like a grimace.

“…okaay.” She responded, not even slightly convinced.

“No, I’m fine. Just think I overdid it with the lifts.” He tried to look genuine. He did think he overdid it, to be fair. He was going to be super sore tomorrow. He glanced at her, and saw concern written all over her face but still decided to ignore it.

“I think I’m gonna head out.” He started rising off the seat, but he felt her hand pull him back down.

“You know you can talk to me.” He looked at her hand and then up into her in the eyes. And there it was again, the sadness that she had seen before. This time it didn’t immediately disappear, however. It stayed and made itself comfortable.

Ted looked down at her hand, again, still placed on his arm, radiating with warmth.

“I miss Henry.” He paused and took a breath. “We haven’t talked much this week and I just got a message that he’s at a sleepover, so.”

Rebecca didn’t say anything, she just squeezed his arm in comfort. She should’ve known it was about his son.

“I mean it’s not a big deal, we’ll talk tomorrow, but. I get a feeling we’re becoming more distant every week. Like him calling me is becoming a chore. You know? Go to football practice, clean you room, put the dishes in the sink, call your father.”

“I’m sure that is not true, Ted. From the little I’ve seen how you two are together, I really can’t see that being the case.”

He smiled at that. He remembered them celebrating the team’s first win, Henry running into his arms, the crowd cheering. “I was hoping he would come visit me on his summer break, but he wants to go to a summer camp.”

“Does he have friends that are also going?” She looked at him and he nodded after a moment’s pause, confirming her suspicions. “See? That’s all kids consider at that age.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” He agreed, but he didn’t look consoled. 

“I just feel like I’m not there for him, when I should be. Like I’m a bad father for leaving.” He finally laid it out.

Rebecca saw the corners of Ted’s eyes sparkle with unshed tears and moved her hand down his arm and took his hand in hers. 

“I think…” she started, unsure. “I think you would be a bad father if you didn’t feel like this. But you do. You’re concerned about your relationship, because you love him to bits. You care about how this distance is going to affect him and what the two of you have.”

The corner of Ted’s mouth rose gently for the briefest of moments. It was like she was reading his mind.

“It’s not the distance that makes an absent father, Ted. It’s the lack of caring. And I’ve known you long enough to know that you care. _A lot_.” She paused. “It’s actually quite annoying sometimes.” She added with a lighter tone.

“What can I say, I’m a care- _full_ guy.” He responded, jokingly. Half-regretting it as soon as it left his mouth.

For a while they just sat there in silence, with, fittingly, The Beatles playing in the background, as if it was a little nod to Henry.

Rebecca still held his hand in hers, her thumb was gently stroking his fingers. The touch and the rhythm calmed him down. 

All of a sudden she had a thought. 

“You know we could work out something so that you could take a little break and go visit Henry. I’m sure we could manage without you for a while with coach Beard and Nate here.”

“Yeah?” Ted perked up a bit at the idea.

“Yeah.” Rebecca smiled warmly at him.

“Yeah." He repeated again, now more firmly, already sold on the idea. "Thank you, Rebecca.” He reciprocated the smile and laid his other palm on top of her hand.

“Ugh, Ted you’ve been saying that way too often recently.”

“Well, I’ve got a lot to be thankful for.” He saw her roll her eyes. Her skin was flushed, still covered in a sheen of sweat from the exercise. She looked so radiant. It stirred something inside him. Something he hasn’t felt in a long while. 

_Oh, boy._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who didn't know, in the original Pilot script, when Rebecca is showing Ted around the club, there was a bit about Freddie Mercury owning the club, so I ran with it!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! Thank you again for your encouraging comments.  
> This time people get to see Ted in a new light. Oh, and i used an [already existing photoshoot of jason](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/f1/13/d6/f113d6d86bb9446ccfd5ee905c617a8d.jpg) to base this chapter (this fic, really) on  
> Hope you like it!

Rebecca was getting ready to leave for work, her car was already waiting for her. She was putting on her blazer when her phone pinged with a message from Keeley. 

_Keep your eye out on your way to work today!_

She furrowed her eyebrows, confused. 

_What are you on about??_

_You’ll see. It’s a wet one._

Rebecca took a look out the window. It was sunny. What was she talking about? She shook her head, reached for her keys and made her way to the car. 

She was scrolling through her emails when the car stopped in traffic. She raised her head only to see— _Ted_?! Before she could comprehend what she was seeing, he was gone. Her confusion level for that morning was already reaching its limits. 

She took a steady breath and looked down at her phone again. She was losing it. She was now seeing Ted’s face in random places. Not only was he taking up entirely too much space in thoughts lately, which she was still trying to ignore, but now _this_? 

The car was moving again. She looked out the window, trying to compose herself but her eyes went wide.

There he was. On a fucking billboard. 

Wet. 

Ted. Wet. On a huge fucking billboard.

“Fuck me”

“Miss?”

Oh, fuck she said that out loud. “Nothing, sorry.” 

_Get a fucking grip_. It’s just Ted. Unshaven, leather-clad, _wet_ Ted. 

Realization finally hit her after they’d passed the image. 

_Ok I see what you meant_

_OH MY GOD I LOVE IT <3 <3 omg he’s so hot I’m losing it_

Before she could even think of a reply to Keeley, she got a twitter notification.

**_AFC Richmond’s Ted Lasso as the new model for Tom Ford_ **

She tapped on it to see what people were saying. She was certainly not expecting the onslaught of people saying he could “ _get it_ ” or calling him a DILF. Some people were even wondering whether he was single. Scratch that, a lot of people were wondering if he was single.

Rebecca chewed on her lip as she kept on scrolling. She should be happy about this sudden change in his image, especially since it was what she was trying to accomplish. Yet the more comments the read the more unsettled she became.

  


She was walking to her office when she spotted Ted talking to Beard in the corridor. She took a deep, steadying breath and walked over to them.

“Hello, Ted. Coach Beard.”

Beard saluted greeting and started walking away, leaving the two of them alone.

“Hi, Boss. How are ya this morning?”

“Fine. You?”

“Uh, yeah. Good. Good.” He paused, contemplating something. “Have you, um. Have you seen—” 

“Oh, yes. Your face greeted me on my way to work!”

“Oh, boy. I’m sorry about that. I didn’t know it was going to be so… much. Y’know?”

“Ted,” she raised her hand trying to stop him from going any further. “It’s a good photo and it’s a good campaign. And the responses so far are very positive. There’s absolutely nothing for you to be embarrassed about.” She laid a hand on his shoulder in reassurance. 

“I think Beckham _should_ watch his back after all,” she added, trying to lighten his mood.

Ted looked at her in surprise, a smile immediately appeared on his face. “Well, if you say so.”

She smiled gently back at him. 

_“The man of the hour!”_

They both turned towards Keeley, who had just walked in the building. Rebecca took her hand off of Ted’s shoulder as if it burnt her.

“Hi, Keeley.” Ted greeted the young woman.

“How are your ears not burning! You’re trending hot on twitter! Again!” She bumped Ted’s shoulder playfully. “They love you, now that everyone can see how hot you are!” 

Rebecca sent him an “I told you so” look, while Keeley kept on scrolling on her phone.

While they were standing in the hallway the guys started strolling in, shouting and whistling when they saw Ted. 

“Nice one, coach!”

“Right on!”

“Oh, stop it, you guys,” Ted replied, tickled by their reactions.

Isaac stopped at the door and looked up from his phone. “Hey, coach! Do you mind if I gave your number to a girl I know?”

Ted froze, a blush rising in his cheeks. “Uhh.” He looked up at Rebecca, her gaze firmly set on the ground. “Umm, I’m gonna get back to you on that, alright?” 

“Right,” Rebecca said once the awkward silence settled and started retreating towards her office. “I’m going to go get some work done.” 

“Rebecca, wait.” Ted reached out his hand to stop her but withdrew it quickly. He looked as if he was about to say something, and it made Rebecca’s heart beat a little faster. 

“Your biscuits.”

Slight relief washed over her.

Ted fished out a pink box from his backpack and handed it to her. 

“Thank you”, she smiled as she reached for it. When she grabbed the box, their fingers grazed and it sent a shiver down her spine. She retreated her hand quickly, ignoring the flutter in her stomach, and started walking away. 

Keeley, in the meanwhile, just stood there watching their exchange, utterly fascinated. 

_Fucking idiots._

“Hey, Rebecca! Wait up!” Keeley shouted after the woman. “Great job, hun!” She winked at Ted, sent him a bright smile and followed the older woman to her office.

Once inside she observed Rebecca fiddle about the room tensely and finally settling down behind her desk. She took a deep breath and seemed to relax slightly as she reclined in her chair.

“You wanted something?”

“Yeah, actually.” She walked over to sit on the edge of Rebecca’s desk. “I thought we should take advantage of the traction Ted’s getting. Like, do an interview or something. So the people could get to know him a little. Now that, you know, he’s coming more into the spotlight, the tabloids will probably latch onto him. And I wouldn’t want him to be followed around by photographers everywhere he goes, y’know.”

“God, no, yeah, you’re right.” Guilt washed over her as she thought back to the time she’d sent a photographer after the both of them. An episode she wished she could forget. She gave Keeley an apologetic look. Keeley just smiled at her kindly and bumped her leg against Rebecca's.

“We could arrange for him to talk a little about himself, get ahead of the press poking around.”

“Good idea, we should take charge, steer the stories in the right direction.” She paused, thinking about something. “Why didn’t we think of this before it happened?”

“Well, who knew Ted was such a snack!”

Rebecca furrowed her eyebrows in mild confusion. “A snack?”

“Yeah, cause he’s a tasty treat.” Keeley watched in amusement as Rebecca’s eyebrows rode up in shock. “Oh, come on, don’t tell me you don’t think he’s mad fit.”

“I _think_ he’s my employee.”

“But you didn’t say no, so… I will take it.”

“Wait—” 

“Roy’s coming back this week! D’you wanna have dinner with us?” Keeley interjected whatever Rebecca was tying to say in her defense.

“He is?” An idea suddenly struck Rebecca. “How long is he staying for?”

“At least a month. Why?”

“Do you think he’d be up to helping coach Beard and Nate for a little while?”

“I’m sure he would. Why? Is Ted leaving us to pursue a modelling career?” Keeley said as a joke but after a second changed her tune. “Wait, he’d be great at it, actually.”

Rebecca chuckled. “Yeah, no, I’m going to give him some time off to see his son.”

“Aw, that’s so sweet of you!” Keeley scrunched her face in a cutesy kind of way, at which Rebecca started to contradict her.

“No, he’d just said that he missed Henry and was getting worried about the distance, so…”

“So you decided to make it better,” Keeley finished. “You have a good heart Rebecca. And I love you for it.” She reached out and placed her hand on Rebecca’s, giving it a squeeze.

“Okay, give me a sec, I’ll text Roy.” Keeley took out her phone and typed up a message with impressive speed.

Rebecca observed the young woman for a moment, she was grinning into her phone as messages started rolling in from Roy. It warmed her heart to see her so happy, so in love.

“Done! He’ll do it.” She beamed at Rebecca, who reciprocated with a bright smile of her own.

“Excellent!” She paused. “Umm, would you like to tell him from me?”

Keeley looked at her, confused. _Oh, no way, not this time_ , she thought.

“Oh, sorry love, I can’t. I’ve gotta go set up the interview. Besides, it’s your news to tell, don’t you think?” She looked at Rebecca expectantly.

“Okay.” She nodded her head, as if psyching herself up. “Yeah.”

“Okay then.” Keeley jumped off the desk and headed for the door. “I’m gonna go to work. Go get him!”

“Wait, what?”

All she heard in response was Keeley amused laughter.

  


After practice, when she’d noticed the team walking off the pitch, she made her way down to the locker room to speak to Ted. She walked through the room smiling at the guys greeting her warmly. She grew so fond of these young men, now that she was making an effort with the club.

She walked over to the coaches’ office and knocked at the door. She opened it at the “yeah?” from the other side.

Ted was sitting at his desk, smiling into his phone, similarly to the way Keeley did that morning in her office. She pretended not to notice the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. 

“Hey, I’ve got something I want to discuss with you.”

Ted looked up from his phone and sent her his signature Lasso smile. “Hi, Boss!” He looked down at his phone, “Hang on for a second there, OK?”

“Am I interrupting? I could come back—”

“No, no, no.” He stopped her and gestured for her to come inside. “I’m just facetiming Henry. This is the only time we could talk today, right buddy?” 

She heard the boy’s “yes” coming from the phone's speaker and smiled gently.

“Don’t be shy Henry, say hello to Rebecca,” Ted said encouragingly and then flipped the phone in Rebecca’s direction so they could see each other properly. She took a step or two to be able to see him onscreen.

“Hello Miss Rebecca.” The boy greeted her shyly.

“Hello,” she sent him a bright smile. “How are you?”

“I’m good, thank you.” He responded politely. “My daddy’s coming to see me soon!”

“I know! That’s what I wanted to talk to him about, actually.”

“Have you ever been to America, Miss?”

“Yes, I have. A couple of times.”

The door to the office swung open and coach Beard came in. The scene before his eyes causing slight shock to pass through his features. 

“Hi, Boss. Ted, can I have a minute?”

Ted looked from Beard to Rebecca to is phone. “Uhhh, yeah.” He handed his phone to Rebecca. “Um, could just distract him for a minute while I go take care of this?”

She hesitated for a moment and then took the phone. “Sure, go on.”

“Thank you. Henry, I’ll be right back. I’m leaving you with Rebecca here, okay?”

“Okaaay.” The boy responded. “Have you been to Kansas, Miss?”

Rebecca looked at the little boy on the screen a little more closely, he had his father’s eyes. “You can call me Rebecca, if I can call you Henry?” She bargained and saw the boy nod his head enthusiastically. “No, I haven’t been to Kansas. But I’ve been to New York and Los Angeles and San Francisco and Miami…" she recounted. 

“You’d like it here, I think. I've lived here for as long as I can remember. ”

“Did you like it here in London on your visit?”

“I did, but we didn’t see much. I really wanted to see Abbey Road, but we only had two days.” 

Rebecca smiled at that. He was certainly his father’s son. 

“Do you know the Beatles?”

She chuckled. “Yes, I’m familiar with the Beatles.”

“I really like them. I wish I could go to their concert, but dad said they don’t play anymore. But maybe one day they could still come back? That would be cool.”

Rebecca looked at him confused, but she wasn’t going to be the one who broke the news to him, so she decided to play along. “Maybe. You know, Paul McCartney once came to a Richmond match, actually,” she recollected.

“WHAT?” The little boy jumped from the coach he was sitting on and came closer to the screen. “You’ve met Paul?!”

Rebecca laughed at the outburst of excitement from Henry. Every minute she spent with him she saw more and more of his father in him. 

“Is he as cool in real life? Did you take a selfie? Do you think he could come to a game again?”

“He is cool. We didn’t take a selfie, unfortunately. And who knows, maybe he will come if the team does well in the next couple of matches?”

“Cooool!” He sat down again. “So, if my daddy does a good job as the coach and the team wins their matches he could come?”

“It’s a possibility. A lot of famous people come to see the important matches.”

“He will then! Cause my daddy is a very good coach and I believe in him. Do you?” 

His optimism warmed her heart. Also, is optimism an inheritable trait?

“I do.” Her eyes caught a post-it on Ted’s computer screen with “BELIEVE” written on it. She smirked.

“Do you like being a boss, Rebecca?” The boy’s curious nature steered the course of their conversation.

“Yes. It’s a lot of work but it’s also a lot of fun, you know.”

“Oh, I like to have fun! Maybe I could become a boss when I get older.” Henry contemplated and she chuckled again.

Ted was walking back to the office when he heard Rebecca’s laughter through the door he had left ajar, and it immediately put a smile on his face. He pushed the door slightly and peeked inside. She was sitting at his desk, huge smile on her face as Henry’s excited voice filled the room. 

The sight made his heart flutter. Henry seemed to have opened up to her pretty quickly, their interactions were so carefree and natural. Rebecca looked so in her element with his little boy, she didn’t even notice him at the door. He felt bad for interrupting their fun.

“I see you two have struck a bond.”

Rebecca looked up at him, like a deer caught in the headlights, but her smile never left her face.

“Dad! Come here!” 

Ted walked over to where Rebecca was sitting in her chair and leaned over her to fit in the camera’s view, trying to ignore the smell of Rebecca’s sweet perfume filling his nostrils. 

“What’s up, big guy?” He looked at the screen, but all he could focus on in that moment was the upper corner of the screen where he could see himself and Rebecca together, smiling down at his little boy. 

“Paul McCartney is coming to a Richmond game!” Henry almost screamed in excitement.

“What?!” Ted mimicked the same emotion.

“Yes! Rebecca said so!”

He saw her scrunch her face in the camera view. 

“I said it’s a possibility," she corrected Henry. 

“Well, yes, but you said if the team played well, he could! And I believe in you dad! And so does Rebecca!” Henry added.

Ted raised his eyebrows and looked into Rebecca’s face, suddenly realizing how close they were. Her big green eyes were staring right back at him, and before he could stop himself, his eyes darted down to her lips. His heart was racing, and it felt like the everything around them stopped suddenly.

Then he remembered Henry was right there. 

He cleared his throat, breaking the moment, and put a little more distance between them, before looking up into the big greens. “So, you believe in me, huh?” 

She bit her lip, trying to either conceal her smile or the blush he noticed rising in her cheeks. 

“Well, it’s hard not to with these hanging around everywhere you look,” she pointed at the sticker on his computer.

“See? They’re working.” He winked at her and looked back at Henry, “Right bud?”

Henry nodded enthusiastically.

Rebecca rolled her eyes dramatically. “Here.” She gave Ted his phone back. “I’m going to leave you two alone. Bye Henry.” She waved at the boy and he waved back. 

She was at the door when Ted told her to wait. “Didn’t you have something you wanted to talk about?”

“Right.” Rebecca was in such a hurry to leave the room, she forgot why she came in the first place. “I’ve spoken to Keeley and she said Roy was coming back for a while, so I’ve thought it could be a good idea if we brought him to help coach Beard and Nate while you’re gone. What would you say?”

“That’s an excellent idea! Is Roy down for it?” Ted asked excitedly.

“He is.”

“Then it’s settled.”

“Okay. Good. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”

“See ya.” 

Rebecca was walking out the door when she heard Henry shout BYE REBECCA!

She exited the room grinning like an idiot, but her heart was pounding in her chest. 

_Fuck, this can’t be happening._


End file.
